ESL Learning Standards - Higher Ed - New York State Education ...

Standard 5: Continued
Commencement Sample Classroom Tasks:
English Proficiency Level
Beginning
The teacher obtains two well-illustrated copies of variations
of ancient flood myths, using students’ native cultures as a
source if possible, and reads them to students. In pairs,
students discuss the stories and as a class compare them in
a Venn diagram. Students discuss the similarities in the
myths. They reflect on whether the lessons the myths
were intended to teach are relevant in modern-day
American culture or in their native cultures.
Performance indicators: 5
Intermediate
Students complete the Beginning task. In pairs, they create
a chart listing the reasons that the gods in the myths chose
to flood the earth, the consequences of each flood, and the
lessons learned. Groups of students brainstorm modernday
problems that correspond to the ancient problems, and
choose one. Together, they create a modern-day flood
myth skit that teaches a lesson, and present it to the class,
with each student taking a part (narrator, angry god, person,
etc.). Students respond to each other’s skits, and discuss
issues common to all the skits.
Performance indicators: 5, 6
ESL
5
Comm
The teacher tells students they will be learning how to disagree
politely, and announces a ridiculous new rule to the
class to spark protests and questions from the students
(e.g., students will only be allowed to complete homework
assignments using crayons). The teacher coaches students
on how to use the appropriate register to phrase their concerns,
and responds to their concerns with more ridiculous
responses (…because the teacher thinks crayons are prettier
than pens) to draw out the experience. At the end of
the activity, students discuss how comfortable they felt
while disagreeing, and compare strategies for disagreeing in
their native cultures with the strategies they learned
through their activity.
Performance indicators: 1, 4
Students complete the Beginning task, and then take turns
role-playing other nonsense situations in which students
must disagree, using characters such as grandfather and
grandson, husband and wife, principal and teacher, etc. to
focus on levels of formality and rhetorical patterns in disagreements.
The teacher coaches students on responses
considered appropriate in American culture. After the
activity, students discuss similarities and differences
between their own culture and American culture and create
a chart of relationships (old/young, boss/employee, parent/child)
with notes on how each person would appropriately
respond in a disagreement in both cultures.
Performance indicators: 1, 4
106 Learning Standards for ESL